How Do I Deserve You?
by Nerokai
Summary: The story is solely about a NarutoXIno relationship. It will take place in the story of Naruto but starts just before he enters the academy. It will have some changes but the story is young so I'm not sure exactly what just yet. If you like please review.
1. Chapter 1

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is my first time even writing a fanfiction so please be nice although I'm not averse to constructive criticism any kind of positive feed back is welcome and greatly appreciated.**_

To minimise confusion:

 _ **My own thoughts before or at the end of a chapter**_

" _ **Kurama/Kyuubi dialogue inside Naruto's head" (this will come later)**_

" _Naruto's own thoughts"_

"Normal conversational dialogue"

 _(any necessary notes within the story)_

Chapter 1

It was an average day in Konoha. Despite the usual humid tropical atmosphere the air was dry as a bone however the sun still maintained its bite which was all too familiar to the residence of the hidden leaf village, who chose to stay inside their homes during this heatwave.

All but one.

A lone boy sits idly on a swing in a ghetto-like park directly across from his run down apartment building.

The lone boy was a common sight around the village, wandering its streets aimlessly with no real purpose or motivation to be anywhere or do anything.

Whenever he neared fearful mothers coveted their children and averted their gaze's while the men of the village weren't subtle to say the least when shooting unrestricted glares of disdain in the young boy's direction.

This particular boy was easy to discern from a crowd with his spiky, blonde hair, three whisker marks on each cheek and eyes that were perpetually downcast with seemingly no hope of seeing any thing above his feet. Not making it easy for him to avoid the hateful comments spat at him by civilians he passed by

This boy's name is Naruto Uzumaki and he is 7 years old.

As the young boy sits motionless on the swing staring at the ground with dead eyes he can't help but be somewhat thankful for these cruelly bitter-sweet days when he can traverse the streets of Konoha without attracting the ire of every civilian he passes as there are none outside to bother him, leaving him to his thoughts.

His mind snaps to attention immediately upon hearing a cruel, sadistic laugh that he knows all too well, he knows what happens next from experience as his heart fills with dread and despair.

He glances up to see the source of the sickening laugh causing the hairs on the back of his neck to stand straight up and cold goosebumps to spread all across his body.

The fat boy standing in front Naruto is called Yuu Iwasaki and is a few years older than the blonde boy. Aside from his weight he has no particularly eye-catching features with short brown hair and plain black eyes making him easy to lose in a crowd, to anyone except Naruto as dread filled his insides as he knew what comes next.

"Oi Naruto! Where's my 200 ryo" _(About $20 USD)_

Growled the plump boy as his two lackeys sneered evilly behind him

"Haha yeah pay up Naruto-kun"

one of the boys said with a cruel laugh.

"But I never borrowed any money off you!"

Cried Naruto defensively, knowing full well the fat boy was aware of this.

"Doesn't matter it's payment for me protecting you against all the other nasty bullies in this area, there are a lot around here you know and I'd hate to see you get hurt."

The older boy gave a smirk not bothering to hide his sarcasm in the slightest manner. The two sheep behind him nodded their heads in agreement

"And while you're at it why not gift my two friends here 150 ryo each as a token of your appreciation for their tireless efforts to keep you safe on these dangerous streets"

Yuu continued with a drawl finishing with a click, an obvious signal to the boys beside him who began moving towards Naruto

" _Who the hell does this kid think he is some kind of Yakuza gangster or something?"_

Queried Naruto before speaking

"There's no way I'm giving any money to any of you bastards so leave me the hell alone goddamit!"

He shouted instantly realising his mistake and attempting to turn and sprint away from the trio of bullies.

As his left foot left the ground beginning his escape he felt dread take him over as his foot was kicked behind his other leg mid-stride sending face first into the soft dirt of the playground.

He cried as a foot connected savagely with his stomach forcing him into a fetal position as he scrunched over with his arms protecting his head trying his best not to vomit from the brutal kick

"That is honestly too bad, because if you're not willing to pay up then we can't protect you any longer. It's not like we can just offer our services for free, I'm sure you understand."

Remarked the leader of the trio with menacing smirk as he followed up with a sharp kick to the back of Naruto's head slipping past his feeble defence.

This encouraged the other two boys to unleash their brutal assault on the younger, blonde boy mercilessly beating ever part of his body.

This was no surprise to Naruto as all his previous encounters with the boy and his 'gang' ended this way.

Naruto knew more than a few of his bones had been broken from the horrendous, throbbing aches in his numb limbs.

Another strong kick to his head caused the poor boy's vision to burst with bright sports before slowly darkening.

His weakening defense didn't discourage the bullies in the slightest as they continued to cruelly beat the 7 year old boy to within an inch of his life.

However, just as he was about to give in to the calm numbness enveloping his body he heard a deep yell obviously from an adult which stopped the boys in their tracks before the swiftly fled the seen.

Naruto's last sight before he completely blacked out was a long blonde ponytail...

Chapter 1 End

 _ **Well that's it for Chapter 1. Like I said this is my first story so I'm not really sure if it'll continue and I don't even think I formatted it right but I guess that's not too bad, at least the content is all there. I hope some of you are kind enough to review keep in mind if you sweet talk me into writing some more the chapter's will likely be much more in depth not to mention longer. Thank you for reading**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**Well here we are chapter 2 I wasn't even expecting this to be honest. First and Foremost I'd like to thank the people who gave me such kind reviews I don't have your usernames because you weren't logged in when you made them but nonetheless if you're reading this and you know who you are thank you so much for the kind reviews. Also I am still finding my way around this site so if you did post a kind review from your account I'd like to mention you once I find the list. As soon as I read them I jumped straight into writing this chapter I'll try my best to make this one longer and if I can't I'LL JUST WRITE 2 CHAPTERS TO FUEL THE FIRE OF YOUTH!**_

Revision:

" _Quoted italics now refer to any character's thoughts not just Naruto's"_

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of it's characters and any resemblance to real life people in name, appearance or otherwise is purely coincidence – This applies to my previous chapter also.

Chapter 2

The glaring rays of an afternoon sun pierced the window of an almost uninhabited hospital room in the hidden leaf village.

A heavily bandaged young blonde boy began to stir from a deep, drug-induced slumber.

He groggily opened his eyes to take in the all too familiar blank hospital ceiling.

"Oh man again?"

Naruto sighed as he remembered the events leading to his hospitalisation.

" _I really hate that damn Iwasaki kid."_

He thought spitefully to himself.

He tried to lift the covers to inspect his injuries to no avail as his arms were restricted in full casts as was his head with a bulky neck brace.

His hand had been laid to rest on a button which he pushed knowing it would summon a nurse.

A short time later a young, female nurse entered the nearly empty room and approached the sole patient located inside.

Naruto glanced toward the door hearing it open.

"Hello Megumi-san."

He greeted the nurse.

"You get into another fight again Naruto-kun?"

Naruto averted his gaze from the young woman and furrowed his brow in his best attempt at a curt nod with his head still restrained.

"Well this would have to be your worst yet, your report says here that most of your bones were fractured in multiple places, especially your arms, you had a fractured skull and most of your ribs snapped which caused some pretty major internal bleeding. The surgeons were able to fix you up good as new with their medic jutsu but put the casts and brace on you just to make sure you didn't move around too much while you slept, it's just a precaution think nothing of it, you will have to stay here for a couple of days however just to be safe."

Said Megumi as she began to remove the brace around Naruto's head and the casts restraining his arms.

"The miracle workers they are I'm still amazed they managed to fix you up so quickly, you were only in the operating theatre for a an hour or so, it normally would have taken them much longer to realign so many fractures."

She continued.

Naruto looked away with a somewhat sheepish expression.

"Well I've always been a quick healer."

He replied, his flat tone betraying his expression.

The nurse failing to notice this gave a snort at his comment and continued to remove his bindings.

After 20 minutes or so the kind nurse had finished removing Naruto's cast and brace along with the rest of his bandages.

"Um, I'm really sorry for being such a bother."

Said Naruto.

"Oh don't worry about it, It's what were here for after all. But please try and avoid fights from now on okay?"

She said with a hint of worry.

"Okay." He said "And thank you very much Megumi-san."

He bowed his head to the nurse.

"You're welcome Naruto."

Replied Megumi as she left the room.

"And be safe."

She said as she closed the door leaving Naruto alone.

The young boy stared out at the sun setting over the horizon as the haunting laugh of his tormentors invaded his thoughts. He tried his best to ignore these thoughts as he lay down to sleep.

 _(The Next Day)_

Naruto awoke to see the third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, sitting patiently at his bedside waiting for the young boy to wake up.

Naruto sat up and looked out the large window to see it was around midday.

"Good Morning Hokage-ji-san."

Naruto said, not wanting to look the man in the eyes.

"Who has done this terrible thing to you Naruto?"

Asked the head of the leaf village, with obvious worry in his voice for his surrogate grandson.

Naruto gave a pained sigh before replying.

"It was that stupid, fat Iwasaki kid."

The blonde spouted angrily.

"Yuu Iwasaki? Son of Rin Iwasaki, that glorified trader that leaves his son behind to prance around to other villages?"

Asked the Hokage, his rising anger seeping into his tone.

"Yeah, him and these two other mindless idiots who I don't know did this to me."

Replied Naruto with resignation clear in his voice.

"And are you okay Naruto, aside from your wounds, you seem very down lately and you haven't visited me at the tower in quite a while, is something wrong?"

Inquired Hiruzen, attempting to change the subject however making a mental note to scold the brat that would gang up on Naruto and treat him in such a way.

"I'm fine, I guess."

Naruto said, looking down and grasping the sheets on his hospital bed tightly.

Hiruzen observed this and frowned slightly.

" _Something is obviously wrong. I won't pry but I can't help him if he doesn't open up a little."_

Thought the Hokage before nodding and standing up.

"Well Naruto, I hate to leave you like this but I'm afraid I can only afford a short visit, come see me in the tower once you get released, I have a special proposal for you, and I will also be expecting an answer as to whats been keeping you so down as of late okay?"

The young boy only nodded his reply.

As the Hokage left Naruto began to ponder what he meant by special proposal before drifting off to sleep.

 _(A few hours later)_

The young blonde was awoken by a familiar voice belonging to the kind nurse from the previous day.

"Naruto-kun, are you awake? You have a visitor."

She said as she attempted to rouse him from his slumber.

The still bleary eyed Naruto looked up in confusion.

"Hokage-ji-san already visited me today. Is he back?"

Asked the young boy, unable to think of anyone else in the village who would bother to visit him in the hospital.

"No Naruto this man is not the Hokage. His name is Inoichi Yamanaka. He is the man who rescued you and brought you here."

"Yamanaka-sama this is Naruto Uzumaki he is 7 years old."

Naruto heard Megumi introduce him to the unfamiliar man as he rubbed his eyes to restore some clarity.

He looked up to see a man with a kind smile looking down at him.

Naruto's eyes widened as he instantly recognised the long blonde pony-tail atop the man's head that ended midway down his back.

"It's good to see you awake and well Uzumaki-san, as this kind young lady mentioned, my name is Inoichi Yamanaka."

At this Megumi smiled.

"I'll leave you both to it then."

She said as she left the room.

Naruto stood and bowed deeply to Inoichi.

"Thank you very much Yamanaka-sama, I fear if you had not saved me then those boys may have killed me and for that I am truly grateful."

"Don't worry about it son, I'm just glad to see you've made full and speedy recovery."

Naruto flinched at being referred to as son which didn't go unnoticed by Inoichi.

" _Geez, what a strange reaction. Is it really that big a deal that I called him son? Surely it can't be that unfamiliar to him, maybe his carers in the orphanage never said it."_

The man pondered.

"Naruto, I would like you to call me by my first name, okay?"

"Um, okay, Inoichi-sama."

Replied the boy hesitantly, he'd never had a conversation last this long with any adult before, other than the Hokage and maybe Megumi, and if he did it was usually for getting into trouble so this was strange new experience for him.

"Inoichi-san is fine no need to be to formal."

"Okay Inoichi-san please call me by my first name, I am not concerned with formalities so use them as you see fit."

Replied Naruto, somewhat awkwardly as he was still unsure how to act in this situation.

Inoichi smiled.

"I would be happy to Naruto-san."

Naruto had been looking down at his feet for most of the conversation nervously avoiding eye contact with the kind man.

"Well again, I'm glad to see you've healed up quite well. I'll let you get back to your rest now and if you ever need anything don't hesitate to ask me, I'll try to help in any way I can."

said the man with a smile.

The two bowed to each other before Inoichi left the hospital.

Naruto lay back down in his bed. He could not stop thinking about this nice man who had rescued from a terrible fate and come to check if he was okay.

" _He called me son."_

Naruto repeated that word in his head multiple times before falling asleep with a small smile on his face.

Chapter 2 End

 _ **Well that's the end of Chapter 2 really hope you enjoy. I'd like to say that I'm not 100% certain I used the appropriate suffix when Naruto was addressing the third Hokage I'm going for an affectionate granfather suffix so if I did it wrong don't hesitate to tell me and if you could give me the correct one that would be very helpful. Also if you have any other suggestions reviews are always appreciated. However I feel I need to explain Naruto's hospitalisation a little since I got a review saying it was a bit over the top, well its common knowledge that Naruto has quite strong healing powers thanks to the kyuubi inside him hence why I had to give him a beating that he couldn't 'walk off', I hope that's an acceptable reason and thanks for the question. If you wanna see more send in a positive review, nothing like a good confidence boost to get the creativity flowing, and I'll happily write more ASAP. Thank you for reading.**_


	3. Chapter 3

_**Wow I'm really starting to enjoy writing this now. I've gotten some really good advice from some readers: Novrier, RockyRoader, tenzo112 and ELEMENTKING5 to name a few among many. Thank you all for taking the time to review my work and give such helpful constructive feedback. Please continue to enjoy my story. (PS I hope it's okay for me to put your usernames up here)**_

Chapter 3

It was a familiar sunny day for the village hidden in the leaves. The recent scorching heatwave that forced the villagers to stay in their homes had ended, allowing the civilians to go about their daily lives unhindered.

Much to the misfortune of a young blonde boy. Who endured countless glares and insults directed at him as he passed by unassumingly in the street.

Naruto had just finished his meeting with the Hokage and could not stop thinking about some of the things the old man had said that had struck quite close to home.

 _(Flashback)_

"What motivates you, Naruto?"

"Um I don't understand, what do you mean Hokage-ji-san?"

"I mean what what makes you keep going? what makes you sad or happy or angry? What is the one thing you believe in above everything else?"

The young boy had no idea how to respond.

" _That doesn't make anymore sense than what he said the first time. What does he mean what do I believe in? What even is there for me to believe in?"_

Naruto continued to stand there, completely baffled.

"Naruto, what do you plan to do with yourself in the future?"

"Well um maybe I could work for Teuchi-san at his ramen stand. I guess."

"I see..."

Replied the Hokage, his brow creased in thought.

"...But tell me Naruto-kun, how do you plan on dealing with customers?"

It took a moment for the boy to catch on to what the kind old man was saying but when he did it felt like a huge weight had been dropped in his guts.

"Most of the civilians and a lot of the shinobi of this village mistrust and outwardly despise you Naruto. How do you plan on working in a business if people hold such a strong and irrational dislike for you?"

Continued Hiruzen, his tone laden with worry and compassion but his words still cut deep in Naruto's heart."

"It's not my fault that they hate me, and it's not like I can do anything about it."

Said the crestfallen young boy in a weak voice

"Ahh but that's were you're wrong my by boy, there is always a way, however it is not mine nor anyone else's place to tell you which path to choose, for it is a decision that can only be made by yourself."

The old man said softly.

"Do not give up hope Naruto."

At these words Naruto spoke up with newfound frustration and anger.

"You shouldn't even have to say those words to me Hokage-ji-san! It doesn't even make sense for them all to hate me this much, what did I do wrong?"

The Hokage stood and embraced the young boy.

"Its okay Naruto you are still but a boy and as such you should be enjoying your youth instead of worrying yourself with such profound thoughts."

The Hokage waited for the young blonde to relax before continuing.

"You are right Naruto. Their treatment of you is completely unjustified. But that is why I have asked you these questions. Because I want you to think long and hard about yourself. "

Said the Hokage, trying to avoid telling Naruto of that fateful night for the time being.

"What motivates me and makes me angry and happy and stuff, right? Those are the important questions only I can find the answers to?"

"That's exactly right my boy. Once you have uncovered these answers, come back to me and I'll advise you on where to go from there, okay?"

"Okay, Ji-san."

 _(Back to present)_

Naruto continued dawdling back to his house, ignoring the ever-present glares and whispers he received from whomever he passed. He was still pondering what the Hokage said when a familiar voice interrupted his train of thought.

"Hello Naruto-san."

The young boy turned to see a familiar man holding a bag of groceries with a blonde ponytail hanging down his back.

"Hello again, Inoichi-san."

Naruto greeted the man with a shy smile on his face.

"It's good to see you out of that hospital bed. How are you?"

"I'm feeling good, How are you doing?"

Replied Naruto, subconsciously avoiding eye-contact with the man.

"I'm doing alright. I just picked up some ingredients for tonight's dinner. How about you, what have you been up to today?"

"Oh nothing really, I just had a visit with the Hokage and now I'm on my way home."

"And how is Sarutobi-sama? I haven't seen him since I was debriefed on my last interrogation a couple of days ago."

"He's doing just fine. Although, I think he's about ready to unleash his will of fire on all that paperwork of his."

Both blondes chuckled at this.

"I swear every time I go into his office the stacks get bigger, in size and number."

Naruto nodded at this which was followed by a brief moment of silence before Inoichi spoke up.

"Say Naruto..."

The young boy looked at the man, patiently waiting for him to continue.

"Do you have any plans for this evening?"

Queried Inoichi.

"No, I don't. I usually just go and eat at Ichiraku's most nights."

Replied Naruto.

"Well in that case, how would you like to have dinner with me and my family tonight?"

Naruto was instantly taken aback by the offer, having never been invited into anyone else's home before in his entire life.

"Um, sure I'd be honoured Inoichi-san, but ahh, I don't actually know where you live."

"I live at the only flower shop in town, I'm sure you've seen it."

The man gestured in the vague direction of his home and Naruto nodded his head in recognition.

"7 o'clock"

"Okay sure thing, I'll see you later then Inoichi-san."

replied the young boy as the two parted ways.

Naruto walked home in silence with a frown on his face as he tried desperately to comprehend the Hokage's previous words and the Yamanaka clan head's continued kindness, both eliciting feelings in the young boy that he had never felt before.

 _(7 o'clock sharp)_

Naruto knocked a few times on the front door of the Yamanaka clan's flower shop.

The young boy tried to pull himself together as he heard footsteps approaching from inside. He was a nervous wreck. His palms had broken out in cold sweat as he had now idea what to expect.

The door opened and Naruto was greeted by Inoichi, who welcomed the boy into his home.

"I'm glad you came Naruto-san, I trust you had no trouble finding us?"

"Haha, this is the only flower shop in Konoha, plus you've got that huge garden in your backyard, it was impossible to miss."

Naruto joked, desperately trying to hide his nerves.

The kind man chuckled at this, oblivious to the boy's uneasiness.

He lead Naruto through a door to the side of the shop which lead to a dining room. The dining room was adjoined to the kitchen and a staircase leading to the second floor of the home.

Two people were sitting at the dining table.

"Naruto I'd like to introduce you to the two most important women in my life..."

Inoichi gestured to the older of the two sitting at the table.

"This is Kaori my wife."

The woman smiled.

Inoichi continued, gesturing to a girl around the same age as Naruto.

"And this is my daughter Ino."

Stated Inoichi fondly before introducing Naruto.

The young boy bowed deeply.

"It is a pleasure to meet you both and I thank you for your invitation."

Inoichi continued to smile as he showed Naruto to his seat at the table.

Once Naruto was seated he noticed the delicious looking dishes that had been prepared, most of which the blonde boy had never seen before.

Inoichi took his seat next to Naruto who was placed opposite Kaori and Ino.

"Itadakimasu."

said Inoichi, which was repeated around the table before everyone dug in.

Naruto was beginning to feel more accustomed to the new situation as he put a bit of everything on his plate, not sure what to try first.

"So Kaori-chan, how was your day?"

"It was fine dear, the shop was not very busy today so I had some time to help Ino with her botany reading."

"Yeah dad, I've nearly memorised half of the books mum gave me."

"Really? That's great!"

Replied Inoichi to his daughter, who began listing off all the flower names and facts she had learned to her beaming father.

This interaction made Naruto's insides clench momentarily.

" _So, this is what a family is like... It's kinda nice."_

Thought the boy solemnly.

"So Naruto, If you don't mind me asking, what was your meeting with the Hokage about today?"

Asked Inoichi

"Oh that well he um asked me some weird questions about what I was gonna do with myself in the future and stuff like that I guess. I had an answer, but now I'm completely lost."

Replied Naruto, not mentioning the other questions about himself he was supposed to be finding an answer to. So far he hadn't had much luck.

"Well, that is completely normal Naruto-san, I don't know many 7 year-olds who have their life all planned out."

The blonde man said with a laugh

"If I were you I wouldn't worry about such things."

He finished.

"You aren't going to the academy?"

Asked Kaori, with a raised eyebrow.

"Academy?"

Questioned Naruto.

This time it was Ino who spoke up.

"Yeah the academy. You know, where you learn to become a shinobi. I'm enrolling there next year."

She said, excitement creeping into her voice.

"Oh yeah I've heard of that place. But Ino-san, why do you want to go there?"

"Well obviously to become a top class kunoichi. But on top of that, I'm gonna be apart of the next generation of the Ino-shika-cho."

the young girl said with gusto.

"The Ino-shika-cho? What's that?"

Asked the blonde boy, intrigued.

"It's the partnership between three clans; The Yamanaka clan, the Nara clan and the Akimichi clan. Three people, one from each clan form a highly skilled team of shinobi. I am part of the current team, and Ino here will take my place like the kids in the other clans will take over from their parents. It has been that way for generations."

Explained Inoichi.

"That reminds me you should come with us next time we meet Shikamaru and Chouji Naruto-san, I think you would all get along quite well."

Added the blonde man.

"Um sure that sounds like fun."

replied Naruto.

He returned his attention to Ino.

"So uh, is there a particular reason you want to be a kunoichi, Ino-san? Besides the Ino-shika-cho?"

The boy asked, curious as to what seemed to motivate the blonde girl.

"Of course there is. I want to be a kunoichi so I can protect the village and everyone who lives here so they can keep on being happy."

Answered Ino naturally, as though she'd been asked the same question plenty of times before.

For the second time that day, mere words had struck a resounding chord in Naruto's heart.

" _Protect the village and everyone in it. There's no way I'd do that. I could count on one hand all the people in this village who've shown me kindness, and I met most of them today!"_

However Naruto did not stop thinking about these words for the rest of the night. Continuing to work them over in his mind long after he left the Yamanaka's home that night.

Chapter 3 End

 _ **Well there you go, Chapter 3. Sorry for not updating in a few days. I've been putting some real thought into the direction this story was going and I got a bit stuck but all is good now. Thank you for reading and if you like it so far, please review.**_


	4. Author's Regards

Hello to all the readers of my story. This little update is to let you all know that this story is now (offically) dead. I'm sorry I know this might be a bit of a let down. I had such good feed back from all the reviewers, something that I'm incredibly grateful for.

In case you're curious as to why I stopped writing, right after I started this story on a whim I developed severe depression which nearly drove me to you-know-what. Thankfully, with huge support from my family I'm seeing a psychologist and am on the mend and things are looking up.

To be perfectly honest with you I put a lot of pressure on myself in regards to this story. As you may know it was my first and with every review I got more and more proud of it and focused on pleasing you readers with quick daily updates as opposed to quality chapters.

If anyone is curious I do plan on writing again. I currently have two stories that I'm thinking of right now that I plan on putting down on paper once I've finished brainstorming them, a star wars one and a naruto one, both OC inserts. I plan on starting one during my school holidays (I'm in high school) and will take my time in delivering only my best unto you, the reader.

Once again a huge thank you to all the people who reviewed my work, seriously you guys are the best.

Finally, to anyone who may find themselves in the position I was in, I urge you not to give up. If you're anything like I was then you won't want to be helped. I'm the kind of person that doesn't like to bother anyone with my problems so I just kept quiet and stewed in my despair until I finally snapped. So to all those people reading this. You are worth it. No matter how small, you're problems are important and I urge you to seek help, whether its a friend, family member, or even some sort of councillor, anyone you trust, before it's too late because I guarantee you once you reach out, get help, and start thinking a whole lot clearer you'll realise how much there is to realise.

Thank you.


End file.
